At various alignment and/or test workstations along a television assembly line, it is required to couple RF television signals to the RF input terminals of a television receiver undergoing manufacture. In the past, it has been common practice for a human operator at a workstation to manually connect a coaxial cable of an RF signal distribution network to the RF input terminals of the receiver. In order to reduce manufacturing costs, it is desirable to perform the operation of coupling RF signals to a receiver at various workstations automatically rather than manually.
While it is possible to design apparatus which automatically makes direct physical contact between a coaxial cable providing the RF signal and the RF input of the receiver at each workstation, such contacting type of RF signal coupling arrangements have practical limitations. For low frequency applications, rugged types of contacts, e.g., such as brushes, which are not particularly susceptible to wear, can be used. However, for high frequency signals, the contacts should be designed to have a shape that will ensure that the RF transmission system maintains its proper impedance characteristics. Such high frequency contacts are susceptible to wear, making them prone to frequent repair or replacement to ensure reliable RF signal coupling. Robotic apparatus may be used in place of a human operator at each workstation to ensure reliable contact, however such robotic apparatus is relatively expensive.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a non-contacting type of high frequency signal coupling arrangement which does not have the aforementioned problems of the contacting type of signal coupling arrangements but which does provide a signal to the television receiver at a workstation which is of sufficient amplitude to properly perform the required alignments and/or tests.